Closed-Circuit Television (CCTV) security systems are commonplace, and are becoming increasingly prevalent as CCTV technology advances. In particular, Digital CCTV integrates security systems over networks and allows for video recorded by CCTV cameras to be archived and shared with a plurality of users.
CCTV video footage is used for a variety of purposes. CCTV cameras may be placed in situations where a human observer is unable to monitor what is happening. For instance, CCTV cameras can be set up in environments with extreme temperatures or noxious fumes. A digital network-enabled CCTV camera can further upload video footage to a central server so a human would only have to perform the most basic maintenance, if any. However, the most prevalent use of CCTV cameras is for security systems, specifically, to minimize losses attributed to thefts and other crimes.
Although CCTV systems may be used to deter crime, their main advantage stems from being able to monitor criminal activity such that the suspects can be apprehended immediately or soon after. Video and potentially audio from a CCTV camera is recorded and stored on a storage medium such as a hard drive on a computer or remote network drive. Upon the suspicion of or discovery that a crime has taken place, an investigator can search through the stored video and audio. When the investigator finds relevant portions of footage that may contain details helpful to the investigative process, he may export that portion of the recording to a separate file on a storage unit such as USB flash disk, CD, DVD, etc. This collection of relevant footage can be termed a “clip.” This clip is useful as evidence, and may be reviewed multiple times by a plurality of investigators to catch details and other information related to the incident.
However, the reviewing and investigative process as it works today is deficient in many ways. Generally, the investigation process itself is a sequence of hierarchical inquiry and analysis processes, whereby at each stage the corresponding investigator analyzes the clip recordings and looks for the macro and micro details of the incident. The investigator can range anywhere from first-level CCTV Surveillance operator to a top-level investigative or law enforcement officer. Typically, the investigator reviewing the clip has to take notes recording his impressions of what is going on. Alternatively, he orally communicates the details of the scene, or his general impressions, to the next level investigator. This system in itself is prone to forgetting details, or being unable to appropriately synthesize the impressions of two or more investigators. The record of impressions or annotations becomes a jumbled mess of notes that are not optimally linked or saved with the video clip of the incident. Where an incident has to be re-reported and escalated to multiple persons and levels, details and observations of the incident may be miscommunicated. Even if there are no human errors, there exists the frustration of repetitive communications. Consequently, the crime investigation becomes a difficult task, necessitating repeated simple inquiries that are otherwise avoidable.
What is needed is a method and system to effectively annotate a CCTV video clip for improved investigation of an incident.